Mary Maxfield Food

Shifts in the “Food Marketplace” have greatly affected our food choices and habits in the last 40-50 years. As one woman stated in the film The Weight of the Nation, “It’s so hard to combat with what the tv is telling you to feed your kids”. Advertising has come to a whole new level in our generation; you can’t turn on the television without seeing an advertisement for fast food or something equally as unhealthy. As another woman put it, “you are taught that you can eat anywhere, anytime of day, and that eating is a glorious thing”. Another shift that has occurred is an economic one. If you go into a poor neighborhood corner store like they did in the film, you would see chips, sugar, sweets, etc. All of these unhealthy foods are cheap, incredibly cheaper than fresh fruits and vegetables. Obesity rates in these poor areas are much higher than in areas with a higher average income. Culturally, our country is changing to one that is always moving; we don’t have time to prepare a meal for the whole family. It’s much quicker to buy unhealthy fast food that you know your family will enjoy than to prepare a healthy meal that they will grudgingly consume. The film mentioned that our bodies were originally built for scarcity. We are wired to react to things that are sweet and contain a lot of fat because when an animal was killed we had to be able to eat as much of it as possible. The signals telling us to stop eating had to be overridden. Now, we consume so much fat and sugar not

Profit-oriented leaders of new diet fads surely would be infuriated while reading the words of Michael Pollan in his work, Unhappy Meals—not necessarily because of his aim to disprove diet fallacies but, rather, the possible ramifications of Pollan’s words on their bank accounts. Explained in the article, the world’s understanding of diets and their effects on the human body has improved steadily—if not exponentially—throughout recent history. Here, the advocates of new diets claim the changing world and its understanding of health requires changes in diet; the human body will adapt to the new times. To counter, Pollan argues that is definitely true, but we have to be open to the idea of the death that occurs during the process.

Our society believes that there is a correct way to eat which includes eating less or consuming food we would not normally eat. Alison study

While nutritionism is suppose to scientifically guide us to eat healthy, Pollan points out that there is no scientific evidence to back it. Instead, he provides research conducted by Harvard nutrition scientist that proves the opposite. "In the public's mind [...] words like 'low-fat' and 'fat-free' have been synonymous with heart health. It is now increasingly recognized that low-fat campaign has been based on little scientific evidence and may have caused unintended health consequences." (Pollan 43). In Based off these observations, Pollan uses inductive reasoning to draw the conclusion that nutritionism is more harmful then helpful.

He probes them to learn the what, where, and how of dinner – knowing what is going into the body, knowing where that food came from, and knowing how that food was made. By first knowing what is being consumed, people can make better informed decisions about their purchases. Nutrition, or lack thereof, is a key component in the battle against obesity. Food giants are hoping to hide the often unnecessary filler present in their products by use of dodgy claims and socially engineered advertisements. In general, most consumers probably couldn’t say where their food came from. This usually boils down to the fact that shoppers typically don’t think about it. Breaking this reliance on mass-grown foods is the second part of Pollan’s proposition. The third and equally important element is how the food is produced. More specifically, Pollan is concerned whether or not the food has been produced in a sustainable manner. Preserving the biodiversity of food, maintaining fertile land for future generations, and ensuring consumers receive food that does not compromise health are all factors of sustainability. Without informed consumers, what, where, and how will continue to be unanswered questions. Whether it is for nutritional or ethical choices, a particular food’s history is something that needs to once again become common

This essay is going to describe how the society has an influence on food choice. Food is very important to the human body since it has the right nutrients for a balanced diet in order to enable good health and growth. However people depend on food, as people need food throughout, for the body to constantly work. However this essay is going to explore how food choice has influenced the internal and external factors that may actually have a little to do with the food itself, and in order to give a clear concept this essay will therefore explore the social factors of what one has to eat.

The article “Food as Thought: Resisting the Moralization of Eating” by Mary Maxfield was published in 2012. In her main argument, Maxfield suggests that food whether it’s a French fry or a granola bar, is not moral or immoral. “Inherently, food is ethically neutral.”(446) By this she implies that we have to eat what our body wants not what it needs. Additionally this article was written as an objection to Michael Pollan’s article, “Escape from the Western Food.” Where she disagrees with Pollan’s maxim, “Eat food, not too much, mostly plants.”

The essay “Eat Food: Food Defined,” from Michael Pollan’s 2008 book In Defense of Food was written to address the American general public about the food industry. Pollan focuses on relatable topics as examples, such as family, common food items, and common belief that everyone wants to be healthy. The essay brings across Pollan’s point by establishing his credibility, explaining why this is important to us, and telling us how to react to the given facts. Pollan makes the readers inquire how we define food by drawing our attention to the importance of examining our food before eating it.

Over the last several decades, the diet of society has been continually changing. This has resulted in different formulas for nutrition and the proper portions of foods that must be consumed. To fully understand the various arguments requires looking at numerous viewpoints. This will be accomplished by focusing on Michael Pollan's Escape from the Western Diet in contrast with Mary Maxfield's Food as thought: Resisting the Moralization of Eating. These views will highlight how diet and nutrition is based upon individual opinions. This is the focus of the thesis.

How much should a person truly value his or her health? According to Michael Pollan’s views, people should take what they put into their body serious because diet is the main difference between life and death. Michael Pollan, who has written multiple books about food and eating, focuses on the Western diet in his essay, “Escape from the Western Diet.” In the essay, he argues that people need to stop eating a Western diet because it leads to health complications, such as chronic disease. The standard way of thinking about health has it that the Western diet is an acceptable lifestyle choice; however, Pollan argues that escaping the Western diet is the best lifestyle choice because the diet promotes disease. On one hand, I agree with Pollan; on the other hand, I believe that consuming organic food is key to improving health as well as the environment rather than just escaping the Western diet.

Do you believe that food is an important factor in the everyday human life? Yes. A simple answer. Food is important because it can nourish the body, or it can poison the body and hinder it. A popular debate that rages continuously within the African American community is if soul food is actually bad for a person or not. The debate has migrated to non-blacks who consumed southern foods and soul foods regularly. There is supporting evidence on both sides of the battlefield, and everyone is entitled to their own opinions. However, through scientific research and reason, it explains that soul food in fact bad for one’s health just as some people believe. However, before we are able to understand the benefits and drawbacks of something, we have to know what it is.

Food is the largest factor in the changes of humanity, making life what it is today. From the places people live to the ideas and beliefs of the public, food is responsible for many people’s outlook on life. In the book, An Edible History of Humanity written by Tom Standage, the history of food and how it shaped the world are displayed. Food has had many political and social influences on society, ultimately changing the world. The political and social impacts of food are very similar on society when examining the globalization in the world, caution about planting and eating different foods, and the competition between people, but food also has many contrasting effects on society such as the freedoms given to people, the spreading of wealth and power throughout a community, and the population of the world today.

How important is the food that the averages person puts into their bodies every day? Eating is a way of making peace, passing the time, sharing friendships, and having a communion. The narrator of Food Inc points out that, “The way we eat has changed more in the last 50 years than in the previous 10,000” (2008). How has it changed? Americans have gone from eating hunter-gatherer style organic greens and fruits, to severely processed sugars, carbohydrates, and high protein meats. Most Americans eat something similar to a “chicken and pasta” diet nowadays. This may not be bad, but is this “new” food really better for us than what people ate 50

Nutrition science rather reductionist science is the study of micronutrients. Various curious nutritionists are conducting research so as to identify the probable nutrient due to which western diet is accused to be the source of chronic diseases. Michael Pollan explores different theories in an effort to resolve the issue. The western lifestyle has made it difficult to avoid intake of processed or industrialized food. The eating habits have significantly changed over the due course of time. Individuals maintaining a western diet are observed to be more prone to chronic disease than those who follow traditional diet. The key to healthy life is to create a filter against processed food, may it be meat or vegetables. A complete change in culture and adaptation of three rules will bring a dynamic change.

Another key point in Pollan’s essay is that we are a part of the problem because not enough time is spent on preparing meals. Pollan also asserts, that people have traditionally distributed a far greater amount of their money to food.He informs readers that 10 percent of American’s income is spent on food. Pollan believes that if we spend more money and time preparing our food, than we would enjoy it more. He states, “In order to eat well we need to invest more time, effort, and resources in providing for our sustenance” (Pollan 425). Pollan clearly stated that he knows quitting the Western diet isn’t going to be easy, but it is up to us as individuals to make it happen.